Lawyer in SCOTUS case against Trump's tariffs says his clients want a refund

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: NPR

Updated February 23, 2026 1:48 PM ET


Neal Katyal, one of the attorneys who argued on behalf of plaintiffs in the U.S. Supreme Court case against Trump's tariffs, told Morning Edition that his clients want a refund from the federal government.

"There's a pretty commonsense principle, which is if you've collected a bunch of money illegally and the court says it's illegal, then you've got to give it back," Katyal said. "It's not a finders keepers rule in this country. We have a system of justice."

Last week, the Supreme Court struck down President Trump's sweeping use of emergency powers to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

The 6-3 ruling is a major setback for the president's economic policy agenda. The next day, Trump announced in a social media post that he would raise global tariffs from 10% to 15% under a different law.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2026/02/23/nx-s1-5722862/neal-katyal-supreme-court-trump-tariffs-illegal

[cstanleytech]

1. They should only be able to recover actual losses when weighed against what their profits were.

In other words if they raised prices and made the same amount or more profit than they did last year percentage-wise then they should get zilch.

[RainCaster]

2. the tarrif expense should be passed on

It's is really us at the bottom who have paid those taxes. Reimburse me!

[cstanleytech]

5. That's essentially what I an saying.

Monies should only be given to a company if it can prove that they lost money due to the tariffs but it should not be paid if they actually made the same amount or a larger amount of profit than they did the prior year before the tariffs. That way companies that raise prices to keep their profits up aren't essentially being given taxpayer money at that point for free.

[bucolic_frolic]

3. How about consumers' grocery bills?

Item after item ... coffee, chips, bananas, beef, beer .... all these prices went up after tariff increases.

[cstanleytech]

6. And companies aren't likely to lower the prices either they know they can gouge the public.

[Lovie777]

4. Corporations, big and small businesses, big and small farms, etc...........................

and consumers all want refunds.

shithole says, no, it's all mine.

[doc03]

7. I saw a columm from Barron's yesterday which I can't find now saying

the loss of tariff income would blow a $2 trillion hole in the deficit over the next ten years.
They said the loss would require cuts in programs. But there was no mention about more tax on the rich.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. "I saw a columm from Barron's yesterday which I can't find now"

This (looks like one of their "Live Updates" commentary thingies) -

3 days ago
Tariff Decision Cuts a $2 Trillion Hole in Deficit

By

Karishma Vanjani

The removal of tariff revenue could worsen the nation's budget shortfall by about $2 trillion over the next decade, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Tariff revenue in all of fiscal year 2025 was $195 billion; the government has collected $28 billion in tariffs since the fiscal year began in October. This revenue had been helping offset the federal deficit. The Supreme Court has now ruled that President Donald Trump's tariffs were invalid.

“We are in a dismal fiscal situation, and it just got worse. More than ever, we need Washington to put forward an agenda to truly address the debt,” the CRFB wrote.

But tariffs–which some critics argued were unlawful–aren't the only solution to the nation’s debt. Tax increases, military spending reductions and efforts to lower health care costs are among other potential options.

(snip)

[doc03]

9. That looks like it. To me it looks like they

were supporting the tariffs. I bet they never were concerned about the hole the BBB blew
in debt.

[BumRushDaShow]

11. Yeah they seem to do the shell game of focusing on the "DEFICIT"

while ignoring what is happening with the "DEBT" (that does not get paid down when the sources of revenue is artificially cut to benefit the 1%).

[Bayard]

10. Take away ICE's budget

And various department heads' private planes. That would offset quite a bit. Along with shutting down trump's pipe dreams before they go any further on his golden ballroom, his Arc d' trump, various wars. He better not say anything ever again about, "buying Greenland."

On and on and on.